One Chance (2013) - IMDb IMDb 17 January 2017 8:05 PM, UTC NEWS There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error The true story of Paul Potts , a shy, bullied shop assistant by day and an amateur opera singer by night who became a phenomenon after being chosen for -- and ultimately winning -- Britain's Got Talent (2007). Director: a list of 43 titles created 13 Dec 2012 a list of 23 titles created 15 Aug 2013 a list of 27 titles created 13 Jan 2014 a list of 30 titles created 08 Mar 2014 a list of 46 titles created 04 Oct 2015 Search for " One Chance " on Amazon.com Connect with IMDb Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin.

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations. See more awards » Videos Edit Storyline The true story of Paul Potts , a shy, bullied shop assistant by day and an amateur opera singer by night who became a phenomenon after being chosen for -- and ultimately winning -- Britain's Got Talent (2007). Meet the next big thing See more » Genres: Rated PG-13 for some language and sexual material. | See all certifications » Parents Guide: 25 October 2013 (UK) See more » Also Known As: Untitled Paul Potts Project See more » Filming Locations: $33,405 (USA) (10 October 2014) Gross: Katy Perry was offered the role of Julie-Ann, but declined. See more » Goofs Where Paul is waiting for Julz as she finishes work, as she comes round the corner there is an EE (Everything Everywhere) store visible behind her. EE didn't exist at this time.

See more » Connections (Atlanta, Georgia, USA) – See all my reviews I saw the film One Chance prior to it's official USA opening, at the Aspen Film Festival, where it received enthusiastic applause and cheering from the audience. Although I am a long-time fan of its subject, British operatic tenor Paul Potts, it is not just "good if you like Paul Potts" but really, really good for anyone. Tony-award winner James Corden is excellent as Paul Potts, as is the rest of the cast, and the film is a first-class production all round. It is heartwarming and inspirational--and humorous--as it tells the story of a man who was born with an immense talent but bullied all his life for being "different." It is full of gorgeous music and full of romance as it follows the story of Paul and his wife, through difficulties--almost unbelievable, except it's true--that almost forced him to give up his dream, until it all came down to just One Chance to make his dreams come true. I would give it more than "two thumbs up" if I had more thumbs! 48 of 55 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Yes Watch: YouTube Singing Sensation Paul Potts 'One Chance' Trailer | FirstShowing.net Watch: YouTube Singing Sensation Paul Potts 'One Chance' Trailer Source: Empire Since the inception of reality TV competitions, there have been plenty of stories of average people rising to fame overnight. One such tale is that of Paul Potts, a shop singer turned world famous opera singer who made waves after Simon Cowell picked him for "Britain's Got Talent." Now the story of Potts is getting the feature film treatment in One Chance (premiering at TIFF 2013 this week) from director David Frankel with "Gavin & Stacey" star James Corden taking the lead role with Julie Walters (Mrs. Weasley from Harry Potter) and Colm Meaney (Con-Air, Get Him to the Greek). It looks pretty cheesy in this first trailer, but it could be a cute little story for those who don't know Potts' story. Watch the trailer below!

Here's the first trailer for David Frankel's One Chance, originally from Empire : One Chance is directed by David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada) and written by Justin Zackham (The Bucket List) and tells the true story of Paul Potts (James Corden), a shy, bullied shop assistant by day and an amateur opera singer by night. Paul became an instant YouTube phenomenon after being chosen by Simon Cowell for "Britain's Got Talent." Wowing audiences worldwide with his phenomenal voice, Paul won "Britain’s Got Talent" and the hearts of millions. Julie Walters, Mackenzie Crook, Colm Meaney and more star in the film hitting TIFF 2013 this week and the UK in October but doesn't have a US release date yet. Find more posts in To Watch , Trailer Discover more on ZergNet: Shit looks cute as fuck. ff One Chance: First trailer out for James Corden's Paul Potts biopic | Metro News Ann Lee for Metro.co.uk Thursday 5 Sep 2013 12:55 pm The first trailer has been released for One Chance, James Corden’s new biopic about Paul Potts.

The Gavin & Stacey star plays the role of Potts, who rose to fame after winning Britain’s Got Talent. Corden is heard saying in the promo: ‘As long as I can remember I’ve wanted to sing. But not everyone loved the sound of my voice as much as my mum did and I got teased and bullied. ‘It was a seemingly endless drama of singing and violence – kind of like an opera – the opera of my life.’ James Corden stars as Paul Potts in One Chance (Picture: Syco Productions/The Weinstein Company) The trailer show a young Potts being bullied, meeting his girlfriend Julz and travelling to Venice to make it as an opera singer. But there he’s told by Luciano Pavarotti: ‘You lack too much the confidence. For me you are not yet an opera singer, and maybe never.’ His best friend, played by Mackenzie Crook, hits back saying: ‘Pavarotti – he’s nothing but a binge eater with a comb over.’ Potts goes on to find fame on Britain’s Got Talent. One Chance also stars Julie Walters and Colm Meaney as Potts’ parents while there are cameos from Simon Cowell and Amanda Holden.

Directed by David Frankel, the film is out on October 25. More Singer Paul Potts dedicates biopic One Chance to wife Julie-Ann - Wales Online Lifestyle Singer Paul Potts dedicates biopic One Chance to wife Julie-Ann 'Julz is my rock - she would have sacrificed everything for me to live my dream,' says the Britain's Got Talent sensation Share Paul Potts and wife Julie-Ann Potts Share Get daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email Mobile phone salesman-turned-globe-trotting millionaire singer Paul Potts has dedicated One Chance, the upcoming movie about his extraordinary life, to his wife Julie-Ann. They first met on a blind date 12 years ago and she always encouraged him to pursue his dream of becoming a classical singer. When he appeared on the first series of Britain’s Got Talent in 2007 the couple, who have now been married for 10 years, were a month away from having their £60,000 terraced home in Port Talbot repossessed and were also heavily in debt.

Potts, 42, said: "Entering Britain’s Got Talent was the final throw of the dice. After that I was quite prepared to abandon my singing ambitions and concentrate on the day job." But then came his life changing, emotion-packed rendition of Nessun Dorma reducing judge Amanda Holden to tears and winning a standing ovation. The story of his life in Once Chance, in which Potts is played by James Corden , is due to hit our cinema screens on October 26 and it has already impressed audiences at the Toronto Film Festival. Emotions on screen in Paul Potts biopic 'One Chance' all genuine, says actress - 680 NEWS Emotions on screen in Paul Potts biopic 'One Chance' all genuine, says actress by Diana Mehta, The Canadian Press Posted Sep 11, 2013 5:39 am EST TORONTO – Some of the most heartfelt moments in the against-all-odds biopic about British tenor Paul Potts’ path to fame barely required any acting from the cast onscreen.

The emotions on display at the climax of “One Chance” were as genuine as when the actors first saw the real-life public audition for TV’s “Britain’s Got Talent” that sparked Potts’ journey to stardom. “When we shot that scene in the film…we did it all day and there was not one take that I was not moved by,” said Welsh actress Alexandra Roach, who plays Potts’ wife in the movie, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. “You remember where you were when you first watched his first audition. There was hardly any acting required in that scene because he does all the work for you.” Potts won over audiences world-wide in 2007 after he auditioned for the televised singing competition, triggering the start of an opera career that has since seen him make his own album and even perform for the Queen. “One Chance” goes back to Potts’ life before he became a media sensation, tracking the tough road he and his wife travelled to the top. Making the film had an element of surrealism for Roach, who remembers exactly when she first heard the real Potts perform on live television.

“I was in hospital at the time, and I had three older women with me and we watched on our little TV in our ward Paul singing,” she recounts. “I remember him coming on and just being utterly blown away by him. When he walked onstage everyone didn’t expect that much of him and then he opened his mouth and this incredible singing voice appeared and it moved all of us.” To have gone from being a fan to starring along James Corden who plays Potts in the film, has been quite the experience, said Roach. “It’s been a mad journey to think that I was in hospital watching him on television and now I’m here playing his wife,” she said with a laugh. Italian actress Valeria Bilello, who plays a classmate when Potts goes to Venice for opera lessons, said she felt a connection with the singer’s story before the film was made as well. “I remember really well when I watched the audition for the first time, and I feel the same way every time I watch it, it’s really, really moving,” she said.

That connection with an ordinary person’s story was what drew director David Frankel — the man behind films like “Marley and Me” and “The Devil Wears Prada” — to make the film. “I had seen the YouTube clip (of Potts’ audition), 90 seconds later I’m weeping and I felt that’s incredible,” he said. “It turned out that the story leading up to those few minutes was as compelling as the ending. The how and the why of it all and especially this romance … It just stayed with me.” “One Chance” hits theatres in the U.K. in late October. The Toronto International Film Festival runs through Sunday. Next Story One Chance (2013) - News NEWS 3 December 2012 6:53 AM, PST | Digital Spy | See recent Digital Spy - Movie News news » Filming has wrapped on Paul Potts biopic One Chance . The David Frankel -directed film stars James Corden in the lead role shot for seven weeks in the UK and Italy before filming was completed on Friday, November 30. Corden said: "It has been fantastic to work with David Frankel and Harvey Weinstein on One Chance .

"The film is an inspiring and uplifting tale and I hope Paul agrees that we have brought his story justice." Frankel added: "I couldn't be more thrilled to have shot such a sweet and funny story with such an extraordinary cast led by the phenomenal James Corden." Harvey Weinstein said: "I (more) » - By Mayer Nissim 21 November 2012 3:03 PM, PST | Filmofilia | See recent Filmofilia news » James Corden has reportedly signed on to star in Working Title’s Christmas comedy School for Santas. The script will be penned by Richard Bean , the playwright behind 1960s English version of Carlo Goldoni ’s comic classic ‘One Man,Two Guvnors’ transferred to the West End and Broadway, starring Corden. The seasonal family movie, which reunites Corden with scriber Bean, follows a down-on-his luck dad who must embrace the Christmas spirit and discover his inner-Santa in order to win back his kids. Corden said: All my life I’ve wanted to make a big family Christmas movie…(it’s) a dream come true.

He added: Re-teaming with Richard Bean and Kris Thykier is like all my Christmas’s have come at once. I can’t wait to start. Thykier, who described School for Santas as a project ‘very close to my heart,’ also said: To be able to work again » - Nick Martin Gavin & Stacey creator and star, James Corden is set to play the lead in School for Santas , a seasonal family film being developed for him by Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner 's Working Title Films , and producer Kris Thykier . The film will be written by Richard Bean , the playwright behind Broadway and West End hit One Man,Two Guvnors which enjoyed a sellout run with Corden in the lead role. School for Santas follows a down-on-his luck dad, played by Corden, who must embrace the Christmas spirit and discover his inner-Santa in order to win back his kids. Corden said: “All my life I’ve wanted to make a big family Christmas movie. To be making one with a company like Working Title Films is a dream come true. Re-teaming with Richard Bean and Kris Thykier is like all my Christmas’s have come at once.

I can’t wait to start. » - noreply@blogger.com (ScreenTerrier) 21 November 2012 8:15 AM, PST | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » London – Working Title Films is developing School for Santas as a vehicle for James Corden (TV's Gavin & Stacey, One Chance ). The film will be written by Richard Bean , the playwright behind Broadway and West End hit One Man,Two Guvnors which enjoyed a sellout run with Corden in the lead role. The movie will be produced with Kris Thykier ( The Debt , Kick-Ass , I Give It A Year ). School for Santas follows a down-on-his luck dad who needs to find his inner Father Christmas to win back his kids. The film is set to start shooting read more 10 October 2012 1:44 AM, PDT | Digital Spy | See recent Digital Spy - Movie News news » James Corden has reportedly been given a set of false teeth for the upcoming Paul Potts biopic.

The Gavin & Stacey actor will play the main role in One Chance , a film based on the life of original Britain's Got Talent winner Potts. Corden is said to have tried out six different sets of expensive false teeth for the role yesterday (October 9), reports The Sun. Film producer Harvey Weinstein allegedly flew over from the Us in order to make sure the correct teeth were chosen for the part. A source said: "James spent six hours in the dentist's chair at Ealing Studios (more) » - By Tom Eames 31 August 2012 6:10 AM, PDT | Digital Spy | See recent Digital Spy - Movie News news » Simon Cowell could play himself in upcoming Paul Potts biopic One Chance . Director David Frankel told Digital Spy that if the film features a recreated version of Potts's audition, Britain's Got Talent judge Cowell will play himself. James Corden will portray Potts in the film, which focuses on his rise to fame as a tenor following his victory in the first series of Britain's Got Talent . "If we reshoot that, he'll play himself," Frankel confirmed.

"If we recreate it, he will play himself." The helmer went on to state that Cowell had been supportive of the production. (more) » - By Emma Dibdin 31 August 2012 5:45 AM, PDT | Digital Spy | See recent Digital Spy - Movie News news » David Frankel has revealed the likely cast for Paul Potts biopic One Chance . James Corden will play the winner of the first series of Britain's Got Talent , with The Devil Wears Prada director Frankel at the helm. Frankel today (August 31) revealed to Digital Spy that, while deals are still yet to be finalised, the film's major roles have all been cast. The Iron Lady 's Alexandra Roach will play Potts's girlfriend and later wife Julie- Ann Cooper , alongside Mackenzie Crook as his best friend, and Julie Walters and Colm Meaney as his parents. "We start shooting in about six or seven weeks," Frankel said.

"It'll be done by Christmas." "It's just the Rocky (more) » - By Emma Dibdin 4 July 2012 7:00 AM, PDT | NextMovie | See recent NextMovie news » Making a concert documentary doesn't exactly require a well-endowed thespian bone — instructions: sing, dance, chat on-camera about singing and dancing, etc. — but Katy Perry , the subject of this July's " Katy Perry: Part of Me ," has proven before that she actually does have a set of acting chops to work with. She voiced a character for last year's " The Smurfs " and has dabbled in TV, and while she's got "Smurfs 2" on deck, is rumored for another music movie, " One Chance ," and dreams of being in " Blade Runner 2," we hope she'll soon step outside of that zone and give acting some full-throttle acceleration. These five movie roles would totally suit such a transition. C'mon. Just look at her. Katy Perry has the perfect, um, physical endowments to portray the legendary comic book heroine Wonder Woman (a.k.a. Diana of Themyscira).

The buxom sometimes-brunette has the picaresque face, legs for » - Amanda Bell Alex Pettyfer has joined and talks are underway with Vanessa Redgrave to join " Precious " director Lee Daniels ’ " The Butler ". Pettyfer would play the role of Thomas Westphall, a pivotal influence in the life of Forest Whitaker 's central character. Filming begins mid-July in New Orleans. [Source: Deadline) Cam Gigandet is joining Emily Browning in Catherine Hardwicke 's thriller "Plush." Hardwicke will produce, direct and co-write. Gigandet plays a psychic psychologist who delves into the minds of patients and sees their memories in order to help them unleash past demons. He meets his match in Browning's character, who shares his gift. [Source: Variety) They Came Together Ed Helms will star in David Wain 's " They Came Together " at Lionsgate. Helms is playing Eggbert, which is Amy Poehler ’s character’s love interest and accountant. Helms will also do a cameo in Rawson Thurber 's "We’re The Millers" at New Line.

Helms » - Garth Franklin 18 June 2012 2:27 PM, PDT | EW - Inside Movies | See recent EW.com - Inside Movies news » • Win a Tony, play a reality TV superstar. Recent Best Actor in a Play winner James Corden (One Man, Two Guvnors) has signed up to portray mega-selling opera singer and Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts in the biopic One Chance . David Frankel ( The Devil Wears Prada ) will direct. Cordon has also joined the music-industry drama Can A Song Save Your Life as the best friend to Keira Knightley ’s aspiring singer. Mark Ruffalo , Adam Levine , and Hailee Steinfeld round out the cast for that film, which will be helmed by John Carney ( Once ). [Deadline] • Speaking of Once and Tony Awards afterglow, » - Adam B. Vary 18 June 2012 2:23 PM, PDT | Collider.com | See recent Collider.com news » Here's your latest fix for relevant casting news.

Check them out at a glance below: Cam Gigandet ( Easy A ) has joined Emily Browning in director Catherine Hardwicke 's Plush . James Corden ( The History Boys ) has boarded not one, but two projects: Can a Song Save Your Life? and One Chance . Cristin Milioti ( Year of the Carnivore ) is in talks to join the Martin Scorsese picture, The Wolf of Wall Street . David Lyons ( The Cape ) is the latest addition to Relativity's romantic thriller, Safe Haven. Hit the jump for more on each project. First up from Variety comes word that Gigandet will join Plush , a project directed, produced and co-written (with Artie Nelson ) by Hardwicke. We previously reported on Browning's cast addition to Plush in which she starred as a teenage patient of a psychic psychologist.

Gigandet will reportedly fill the role of the psychologist who attempts to help his patients » - Dave Trumbore 18 June 2012 11:01 AM, PDT | Deadline | See recent Deadline news » Exclusive: Fresh from his Best Actor Tony Award for One Man, Two Guvnors, James Corden has booked two strong film roles. Corden has signed on to join the John Carney -directed Can A Song Save Your Life, which stars Keira Knightley , Mark Ruffalo , Hailee Steinfeld and Adam Levine . Corden will play the best friend of Knightley’s character, who plays a singer who moves with her boyfriend to New York to pursue music careers and she gets dumped as soon as he makes it. Corden is also set to star as Paul Potts in One Chance for The Weinstein Company. Potts is the schlubby British cell phone salesman who showed up onstage to sing opera on Britain’s Got Talent in 2007, and left a hosting panel that included Simon Cowell and Piers Morgan with their jaws on the floor.

David Frankel is directing that film, as Potts won the competition » - MIKE FLEMING 15 June 2012 1:41 AM, PDT | Digital Spy | See recent Digital Spy - Movie News news » James Corden has reportedly signed up to star as Paul Potts in an upcoming movie. The Gavin and Stacey actor is said to have agreed a deal to lead One Chance , the biopic of the first Britain's Got Talent winner, according to the Daily Mail. Harvey Weinstein allegedly contacted Corden over joining the project after his recent Tony Awards win for One Man, Two Guvnors. Corden is apparently working on the screenplay with The Devil Wears Prada 's David Frankel . "James is a brilliant (more) » - By Tom Eames 20 April 2012 8:23 AM, PDT | Dark Horizons | See recent Dark Horizons news » Untitled Gordon-Levitt Project Tony Danza is set to play Joseph Gordon-Levitt 's father in the latter's untitled writing and directorial debut. The story follows a present-day Don Juan and his quest to become a better person. Julianne Moore and Scarlett Johansson also star.

Danza worked with a then 12-year-old Gordon-Levitt back in 1994's baseball-themed "Angels in Outfield". [Source: Variety] One Chance Beloved British actor and comedian James Corden is in talks to star in " One Chance ", David Frankel 's biopic of Paul Potts for The Weinstein Company. Potts was a manager at a cellphone store who was launched to global fame after displaying his talents as an opera singer on " Britain's Got Talent ". Justin Zackham penned the script and shooting aims to kick off in October. [Source: The Daily Mail] 20 April 2012 6:21 AM, PDT | The Playlist | See recent The Playlist news » British actor James Corden is the toast of Broadway at the moment. The 33-year-old, got his start in Mike Leigh 's " All Or Nothing " and in the stage and film versions of Alan Bennett's " The History Boys ," and became a household name in the U.K.

after co-writing and starring in the hit sitcom "Gavin and Stacey." He's had ups and downs since then: starring vehicle " Lesbian Vampire Killers " was savaged, and supporting turns in Hollywood pictures like " Gulliver's Travels " and " The Three Musketeers " never quite helped him cross over to the U.S. But in the last year he's found virtually nothing but praise, thanks to his starring role in the play "One Man, Two Guvnors," a contemporary updating of Carlo Goldoni 's "Servant of Two Masters," by playwright Richard Bean . The play, and Corden in particular, received rave reviews when it debuted last summer at the National Theatre in London, » - Oliver Lyttelton 2 March 2012 5:41 PM, PST | WorstPreviews.com | See recent Worst Previews news » During the Academy Awards, Harvey Weinstein approached singer Katy Perry to find out if she would be interested in starring in " One Chance ," a "Billy Elliot"-style movie about a British opera singer Paul Potts .

Weinstein would like to see Perry play the wife of Potts - a mobile-phone salesman who became a singing sensation after winning Simon Cowell 's " Britain's Got Talent " in 2007. "I was talking to Katy about a new project, a possible dramatic role in the Paul Potts movie, which will be shooting in England soon," said Weinstein. "We'd really like someone like Katy or Adele to play the role of Potts' wife, and Katy seemed genuinely interested." Following his win, Potts performed for Queen Elizabeth and recorded the album " One Chance ," which topped the charts in nine countries. He was said to be worth about $8 million in 2009. Potts met his wife, Julie- Ann Cooper , on the » 2 March 2012 9:27 AM, PST | The Playlist | See recent The Playlist news » Does anyone still listen to Paul Potts ? In case you forgot, he made a brief cultural splash a few years ago when he showed up on " Britain's Got Talent " and wowed audiences Susan Boyle -style, leading to a brief run of concerts and fame, before everyone moved to something else.

But a movie about his life was in the works anyway, and the last we heard about it was all the way back in the fall of 2010, when " The Devil Wears Prada " director David Frankel was attached to direct. Well, belive it or not, this thing is still happening. The New York Post caught up with Harvey Weinstein , who's got some big ambitions on who he wants to play the singer's wife. “I was talking to Katy [Perry] about a new project, a possible dramatic role in the Paul Potts movie, which will be shooting in England soon. We’d really » - Kevin Jagernauth James Corden stars as Paul Potts in the trailer for a new biopic about the singer's life James Corden stars as Paul Potts in the trailer for One Chance September 05, 2013 by hellomagazine.com James Corden stars as Britain's Got Talent winner Paul Potts in the newly-released trailer for One Chance, a biopic about the Welsh singer's life James Corden stars as Britain's Got Talent winner Paul Potts in the newly released trailer for the biopic One Chance .

In the film James takes on the role of Welsh mobile-phone salesman-turned-opera singer Paul, who first captured the nation's attention in 2007 when he auditioned for the famous talent show. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO James as Paul during filming in Wales Directed by David Frankel, the man behind The Devil Wears Prada, One Chance stars Julie Walters and Colm Meaney as Paul's mother and father, Yvonne and Roland Potts. Mackenzie Crook plays Paul's best friend and Carphone Warehouse co-worker and Alexandra Roach stars as Paul's girlfriend, Julie-Ann Cooper, who he met online in 2001. The film charts Paul's life starting with his experiences as a bullied schoolboy, meeting his wife Julie-Ann for the first time at Swansea railway station and the fateful moment he applied for Britain's Got Talent. Paul promoting the film Rumours have also been circulating the Simon Cowell, who signed Paul to his record label Syco, will play himself in the film. Speaking during filming James revealed that music mogul Simon had showed his support for the biopic. "I haven't met him or talked to him, but one of our producers is in touch with him a lot," said James.

"He's been very supportive from afar. "He loves the story – it's just a testament to the power of his shows." Over the past year James and the rest of the cast have been spotted filming in Wales and Venice, where Paul attended an opera master class before he rose to fame. Paul Potts interview: 'I didn't believe anybody could ever love me' - Telegraph Film Paul Potts interview: 'I didn't believe anybody could ever love me' Paul Potts, Britain's Got Talent winner and now subject of the James Corden film One Chance, on Pol Pott jokes, Simon Cowell, and why reality is stranger than fiction James Corden (right) plays Paul Potts (left) in One Chance Photo: Rex Image 1 of 2 'When I sing I can be myself': Paul Potts, performing at the Royal Alber Hall in 2006 Photo: Getty By Craig McLean 10:00AM BST 18 Oct 2013 James Corden knew it wouldn’t be easy.

How to portray the second-most famous winner of Britain’s Got Talent , the UK’s most popular opera star, and the biggest thing to come out of Port Talbot since Michael Sheen, Anthony Hopkins, or perhaps even Richard Burton? “God, no, I’ve not done the singing!” splutters the actor who plays Paul Potts in One Chance . Named after the singer’s debut album – and after this against-the-odds hero’s credo – it’s the big-screen biopic of the unlikely winner of the first series of the reality show. That was a busy six years ago, two years before another unlikely singer from another Celtic corner of Britain – Susan Boyle – threatened to eclipse the triumph of the one-time Carphone Warehouse branch manager. “I kind of sung, then Paul has gone in the studio and looped his vocals to my voice,” explains Corden of the comedy directed by David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada) and overseen by two titans of global entertainment, Simon Cowell and Harvey Weinstein. It tells the life story of the now 43-year-old Potts, up to the point where he enters Britain’s Got Talent.

“So every time Paul Potts sings in the film, Paul Potts’s singing comes through.” That said, Corden did have “lots of lessons about breathing and stuff”. And he studied hours of performance footage of the light operatic titan who, since his victory in 2007, has sold some five million copies of his three albums. “And because Paul hasn’t had a mass of formal training, the way he stands when he sings – his posture – isn’t what you would say is that of a regular opera singer. He pushes quite hard when he hits those big notes.” Sounds tricky, no? Even for a performer of Corden’s Tony Award-winning versatility, doing justice to the life and times of the ill-starred-but-ultimately victorious Potts – big of voice (and girth), but even bigger of troubled backstory – was a tall order. And then there were the teeth. “That was one of the hardest things, really,” admits Corden, acknowledging the dentally challenged smile that, underlaying Potts’s still-breathtaking BGT audition rendition of Nessun Dorma, has now been viewed 116 million times on YouTube.

“I wore these false teeth, and wore them for about two months before we started shooting, just to get used to talking with them in. It was,” the actor clarifies, “a full set of bashed-up teeth.” Related Articles Paul Potts on the final of Britain's Got Talent 18 May 2009 “What’s he complaining about?” tuts the man himself good-naturedly. “I had to live with those teeth for years!” Paul Potts flashes a smile that, if not quite Colgate, is certainly – courtesy of a post-BGT root-and-branch orthodontic makeover – all right-angles. In a seafront café in Port Talbot, Potts is recounting his improbable life story – from relentless childhood bullying to shelf-filling in Tesco (frozen foods, and wines and spirits) to becoming an international opera star with a particularly rabid following in Asia. And now, to real-life hero of a crowd-pleasing, well-funded, well-made comedy-drama. Between dentally efficient chews on a lunchtime chicken salad, Potts is, at my behest, clarifying which bits of One Chance are true and which are artistic licence.

So, yes, during his long years of struggle to make it as an opera singer, he did secure a one-off performance before Luciano Pavarotti, albeit not in scenic Venice. But no, he didn’t choke. “It was in a different part of Italy. And the masterclass with Pavarotti went quite well – I was the only one that he asked to sing twice.” Yes, he did meet his wife Julie-Ann (played by Alexandra Roach) over the internet. But no, they didn’t spend six months texting before meeting at Swansea station. And no, he didn’t tell her he looked like Brad Pitt (and she didn’t claim to resemble Cameron Diaz). “She had a picture of me, but I didn’t have a picture of her. So when I got off the train she didn’t just run away,” he says, ever-ready with a hearty laugh and smile of self-deprecation. Potts is a proud man, and clearly enjoys his success, but the shadows of his embattled former life seem to swirl and eddy around his (by his own admission) ample self.

In an accent that is part-Bristol, the city of his working-class childhood, and part Wales, Potts recounts how he had a couple of girlfriends before meeting the woman he married in 2003. But nothing serious? “Well, I’ve always been serious in everything I’ve done,” Pott says quietly but jovially. Then, a beat of silence. “Perhaps a little too serious. I’d get committed a little easily, so I got hurt quite easily. Plus, I never believed that anybody could love me.” One Chance begins with a splash of mickey-taking – a nurse in hospital chortles at the name of her young patient. Is Paul Potts really named after the genocidal Cambodian dictator of Killing Fields ill-repute? And then it careers good-naturedly into slapstick bullying (if that sentence doesn’t contradict itself twice) – adolescent Paul, fleeing a pack of baying schoolboys, wallops face-first into scaffolding. Hence that collapsing graveyard of teeth. “There’s some truth in that,” nods Potts. “I was running for a bus, and I ran into a scaffolding pole. It actually pushed my front teeth behind my nose.

This is in the book,” he says, mentioning for the first time (there will be three other mentions) the imminent autobiography he splurged out over “four or five weekends. I was contracted for 60,000 words. I wrote 130,000”. It, too, is called One Chance. “And I was warned it would be very painful when the teeth came [back] down,” he continues. “And their warning was correct. It was absolutely agony – and I had to allow them to come down by their own accord.” Still, “there were compensations – I spent every Wednesday afternoon in a dentist’s chair with the prettiest University of Bristol dental students treating me,” Potts beams, winningly. “One of them was bashed to bits,” he says, meaning his front teeth, “and the one that wasn’t was the one that killed itself off. That’s really painful when that happens. No painkillers ever touched that. At the time, I’d not known pain like it.” “At the time” being the key phrase. After winning Britain’s Got Talent, Potts received an unsolicited offer from a dentist to fix his calamitously chaotic bridgework.

It had broken once when it dropped out of his mouth while on a night shift in Tesco, then broke again “eating ice cream in Italy. Really solid ice cream,” Potts clarifies. He gladly took up the offer of free, full-frontal cosmetic dental care, even though it was only three days before his BGT prize: a slot at the Royal Variety Show in Liverpool. It was a risky procedure for anyone, far less a man expected to showcase his preternatural vocal gifts for the Queen 72 hours later. “My mouth just doesn’t numb up,” he shrugs. “I had 17 injections.” None of them worked. “I could feel everything he was doing. And in the end I said, ‘No, it’s fine’, and I just gripped quite hard on the chair!” Paul Potts, James Corden and the cast of One Chance with singer Taylor Swift, who contrubutes a song to the soundtrack What about the Pol Pot joke – did he get that a lot? “Eh, I was repeatedly bullied by it,” he says quietly. “Repeatedly,” he repeats. “It was one of the reasons I was bullied in school. Again, it’s something I cover in the book.

I always shake my head when I see somebody tweet that as if it’s a brand new joke. It’s been going since the late Seventies.” Was he called Dictator at school? Taunted with cries of “how many people have you killed today?” “That kind of thing. ’Cause he was at his prime when I was at school in ’77, ’78. I remember a Blue Peter Christmas collection for milk-bottle tops, and they did one for Cambodia – I couldn’t believe it,” he sighs. “And it got quite oppressive,” Potts adds, which sounds like the understatement of the year. He says he was bullied from the moment he started school, aged six. It didn’t stop until he left school, when he was 18. Twelve years of extreme hurt. “You just question your own existence, and why things happen to you. At the time bullying wasn’t taken very seriously. If you told teachers, it got worse. And all they would say was: ‘Ignore it. It’ll go away.’ The trouble is, it never goes away. The bullying I had was repeated and sustained.” Aside from his name, Paul Potts’s love of singing and opera marked him out.

“That was a teacher’s pet-type thing. And also, I wore school uniform at junior school when I didn’t have to.” His parents weren’t “well-blessed” with money, so it was easier to wear the same thing every day. “But that singles you out, as did free school meals, which I had. And I wasn’t very good at just taking it. ’Cause I was just taking it all the time, and there would come a time when I’d respond – ’cause I didn’t have the outlet of friends that I could talk to about it. So I’d take it for ages, then I’d lose my rag. And of course they loved seeing that. But how do you ignore it?” Despite his constant torment and isolation, Potts insists he never entertained suicidal thoughts. He didn’t have “the courage” for that. “But I thought about throwing myself down stairs,” he admits, “and tripping over things to make myself injured enough for me to end up in hospital, and for people to feel something other than hatred. Even if it was sympathy. But I soon learnt that sympathy is short-lived, and doesn’t really change people’s real view of you.

So in the end I just accepted the bullying and took it.” In senior school, Potts did ask his tormentors why he was their target. “They just laughed and said, ‘because you’re you’. So I took that and had very little self-esteem as a result.” Through this barrage of abuse, Potts maintained his love of opera and of singing. As Corden puts it, “One Chance is about a boy from an industrial steel town in Wales who is bullied his whole life, and throughout endless adversity never really gives up his dream of wanting to be an opera singer. And this is in a town where people didn’t even listen to opera, let alone dream of being an opera singer.” In fact, Potts didn’t move to Port Talbot until 2002 – it was the only place he and Jules could afford to buy a house within their budget of £35,000 – but the point remains the same. His idiosyncratic passion is, without question, admirable and remarkable, but also, perhaps, foolhardy; he was handing the bullies another stick with which to beat him. He gives an easy-going shrug. “I couldn’t see an end to the bullying.

So when I went singing there were comments about me that weren’t about how much they hated me or how smelly I was. And at the time I was quite a good runner,” he says, seemingly randomly. “I was skinny – those were the days,” he smiles, “and singing gave me an area where I could be myself. And that was something that didn’t happen very often. No area of my life was free from bullying apart from that.” Did any of his nemeses try and crawl back into his life after his success? “I had a few messages come through Facebook, and they apologised. I’ve been asked whether I had revenge – but revenge is never, ever sweet. It’s always bitter. And I’ve turned to them and said: ‘there’s nothing to forgive’. This is 30 years ago – that makes me feel old! – and you can’t allow things that happened to you then to control your future. ’Cause that allows the dark side to win.” Paul Potts, brilliantly, is having the last laugh. Alongside the film and book of his life, this month sees the release of the album of his life: a Greatest Hits.

It includes all the classics – “Nessun Dorma”, Cavatina, operatic takes on the themes from Titanic and Gladiator, Italian language versions of A Whiter Shade of Pale and The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, a reboot of that number Simon Bates co-opted for Our Tune. His next album – featuring light operatic covers of modern pop and rock standards (Foo Fighters’ Home, The Best of Me by Richard Marx) – is already “in the can”. And Potts is not long back from performing in South Korea (along with Japan and Germany, it’s one of his biggest markets), where he was up at dawn dealing with jet lag and emails, and using the opportunity to indulge another passion – photography – to shoot Seoul’s early-morning traffic. 'Revenge is never sweet': Paul Potts (JOHN WELLINGS) Meanwhile, parked outside the café is a new E-class Mercedes. Well, a second-hand one. “Nothing fancy. But it’s a top trim, so it’s nice and comfortable. It’s got lots of toys.” In 2009 his net worth was said to be £5m; it must be much more today. Yet Potts is careful, to say the least.

“When you buy a brand-new car,” he begins. “That was 35-grand worth of car, and [if you buy new] basically you’re chucking five grand into the drain immediately. What’s the point in that? There are so many more things you can do with five grand. I just don’t see the point in spending money if you don’t need to.” He and Jules have stayed in Port Talbot, albeit in a bigger house. And they’ve bought a place in the Lake District. But again, prudence is the order of the day. “It’s there to be sold if necessary. And in the short-to-medium term it’s cheaper than staying in a hotel, which is what I was doing if I had a bit of a break. You’d spend a grand in five days. And if you go there four times a year, that’s four grand a year.” Still, if he wanted to expand his property portfolio, there’s one sure-fire, cash-in-the-bank winner: a joint album with his fellow BGT alumnus Susan Boyle. Surely Cowell’s Syco masterminds are plotting a Subo/PaulPo duets album as I type? Potts smiles.

“I’ve been asked by fans about that. But it’s not come up yet. I wouldn’t be opposed to it.” How’s his relationship with the father-to-be? “I’ve met Simon a few times since [I won], and we have a good relationship. I pop into [Syco parent record label] Sony in London a lot if I’m in the area and have a coffee – they do good coffee! – but I’m not sure what his exact involvement in the movie was. It was all behind-the-scenes stuff so I didn’t get to see it.” In the early days of Potts’s music industry career, he acknowledges, Cowell offered good advice.“He was very clear on a few things,” he says somewhat gravely. “You’ve got to be yourself. People will see through other versions of you. And never believe the hype. It’s important not to get sucked in.” What, I wonder, is Harvey Weinstein like? “Very driven. I’m glad he’s behind this film. I’m not sure he’d see it as a compliment, but he’s the Simon Cowell of the film industry. Very committed to what he does and goes after things that he believes in.” Is Weinstein scary? “A little.

Just like Simon Cowell.” Paul Potts – a man used to hiding his smile, and his feelings, for most of his life – grins. A full-frontal, toothy grin. What did he think of One Chance in the end? “Well,” he replies, all philosophical, “they say reality’s stranger than fiction sometimes.” Paul Potts: The Greatest Hits (Sony/Syco) is released on October 28. One Chance is in cinemas on October 25 James Corden admits to being dubbed in Paul Potts biopic One Chance | Metro News James Corden admits to being dubbed in Paul Potts biopic One Chance Ann Lee for Metro.co.uk Tuesday 10 Sep 2013 4:09 pm James Corden on the red carpet for One Chance (Picture: REUTERS) James Corden has revealed that he doesn’t do his own singing in the new Paul Potts movie One Chance. The Gavin and Stacey star plays Britain’s Got Talent singer in the film but has admitted all his singing vocals were dubbed.

Speaking at the world premiere of One Chance at Toronto International Film Festival, he explained: ‘It was very, very straightforward – I would pretend to be singing opera, and then Paul would go into the studio and loop to my mouth. Alexandra Roach, Paul Potts, Valeria Bilello, James Corden and Taylor Swift pose at Toronto International Film Festival (Picture: Getty Images) ‘I hope I haven’t given it away too much, but that’s basically what happened.’ Taylor Swift, who composed a song for the film, joined Corden on the red carpet along with Potts himself. She said: ‘It’s amazing to be a part of this project. It’s a movie that really moved me in a way that I haven’t been moved in a long time, and to to have just a small part in telling the story… ‘I wrote the end-credit song so it’s the last thing you see of the story and I’m really, really honoured.’ One Chance is out on October 25 in UK cinemas.

More Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts turns up on set of biopic One Chance - Wales Online News Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts turns up on set of biopic One Chance Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts today turned up on the set of filming for his own biopic ‘One Chance’ starring James Corden. Share Paul Potts visits set of his biopic One Chance Share Get daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email Paul Potts, the former hard up mobile phone salesman turned jet setting millionaire opera singer, has dropped in on the set of his own biopic. The movie, One Chance stars Gavin and Stacey star James Corden as Paul overcoming obstacles including bad teeth and bullying to win the first series of ITV talent show Britain’s Got Talent. Potts, now 42, was manager of the Carphone Warehouse store in Bridgend and lived in a cramped home in Port Talbot when his stunning performance of Nessun Dorma won him the life he dreamed of. Gallery: Paul Potts visits the set of One Chance.

Click 'Show Caption' to find out more After his singing career took off Potts and his Swansea born wife Julie-Ann moved a short distance from their home in Edward Street, Port Talbot to an art-deco mansion overlooking Swansea Bay in the steel town’s Baglan Road. The house is known locally as “Mugs’ villa” after it was commissioned by a bookie. This week, the cast of One Chance have been filming on location in Port Talbot and when Potts’ own wedding was re-enacted at St Catharine’s Church, Baglan, just a short distance from his spacious new home, he could not resist the temptation to call in. He was photographed chatting to James Corden and others of the cast including Julie Walters and Star Trek star Colm Meany - who play his mother and father Yvonne and Roland - The Office and Pirates of the Caribbean star, Mackenzie Crook - who plays his best friend - and Ammanford-born Alexandra Roach, who starred as a young Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady and is playing his wife Julie-Ann.

Potts and Julie-Ann first met in an internet chat room in 2001, then met face to face for the first time shortly after at Swansea Railway Station before going tenpin bowling and then for dinner at Mumbles Pier. They tied the knot in May 2003. The title of the movie of Potts’ life is a nod not only to his one off performance on Britain’s Got Talent which won him £100,000 in prize money and a £1m recording contract but also to his subsequent album One Chance, which topped sales charts in nine countries. Director David Frankel who has also been at the helm of movies including The Devil Wears Prada and Marley and Me said of Once Chance: “It’s just the Rocky story. “I think most people were not aware of the full extent of the adversity that Potts suffered, but it’s also a love story. "It's a story of this guy who meets a woman online, a guy with no confidence, still living at home with his parents and working in a Carphone Warehouse, and he meets this woman who just believes in him. “Almost for no reason.

Because she loves him, she believes in him, and she won't let him give up his dream.” The movie has been filmed this week in Edward Street where Potts used to live and at Cafe Remos on Aberavon Beach where he and his wife often went. The movie will also contain scenes filmed in Bristol where Potts grew up. He turned to music after being bullied at school. Cafe owner Anthony Difrancesco said: “It’s putting Port Talbot on the map again.” The town, already famous as the birthplace of stars like Richard Burton, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Michael Sheen and Rob Brydon, made world headlines last year when Sheen staged his three-day biblical epic The Passion in and around Port Talbot. Paul, who will tour the US, Europe, Australia and Canada in 2013, said on Twitter : “All very freaky watching our 'selves' Julz (Julie Walters) can't stop giggling.”

Question: Who plays singer Paul Potts in the 2013 biopic One Chance?
Answer: James Corden